Emails, instant messages,
and texts — and the
expectation that
they’ll be responded
to immediately — are
driving workers to
distraction.

LARRY D. ROSEN, INTERVIEWED
BY FRIEDA KLOTZ

How quickly should employees respond to emails? In most workplaces the answer is
“right away.” But scientific research
is starting to suggest that managers
need to recognize the effect that being
“always on” has on employee stress
and overall efficiency.

More than a decade after the
smartphone’s introduction, researchers have been tracking and analyzing
its impact — and that of its addictive